Washington — Former Attorney General William Barr has dismissed the argument that the election interference case against former President Donald Trump is invalid due to the protection of his statements under the First Amendment. In an interview on “Face the Nation” on Sunday, Barr stated, “It’s undoubtedly a challenging case, but I believe it does not violate the First Amendment. From a prosecutor’s perspective, I consider it a valid case.”
Trump’s legal team contends that he was indicted for political speech protected by the First Amendment. The indictment itself acknowledges that Trump had the right to publicly discuss the election, even if he falsely claimed that there was fraud that determined the outcome and that he won.
Barr stated, “If that was the extent of it, I would be concerned about First Amendment implications.” However, he argued that Trump’s alleged actions went beyond political speech.
Barr explained, “This involved a situation where the states had already officially determined and certified the election results. The government’s allegation is that the president conspired and devised a scheme to erase and nullify those lawful votes.”
Barr also mentioned the substitution of unauthorized panels and pressuring the vice president to adopt the Trump votes and reject the Biden votes, or even delay the certification. According to Barr, the completion of a conspiracy crime occurs at the time it is agreed upon and the initial steps are taken.
In the 2020 election interference case, special counsel Jack Smith recently brought four felony charges against Trump, including conspiracy to defraud the United States, conspiracy to obstruct an official proceeding, obstruction of an official proceeding, and conspiracy against rights. Trump has pleaded not guilty.
Barr declined to confirm whether he was interviewed by the special counsel but stated that he would appear as a witness if called upon.
The former attorney general, who resigned from the Trump administration in December 2020, revealed that he informed Trump on multiple occasions that there was no evidence of fraud that could have changed the election outcome.
Denial of responsibility! VigourTimes is an automatic aggregator of Global media. In each content, the hyperlink to the primary source is specified. All trademarks belong to their rightful owners, and all materials to their authors. For any complaint, please reach us at – [email protected]. We will take necessary action within 24 hours.
